Almost Lovers
by justponderingtheuniverse
Summary: What happened (at least in my mind) after Katara healed Zuko in Avatar Aang. No character deaths this time. Hooray! Technically could be canon.


Almost Lovers

**A/N: so I'm supposed to be working on my senses piece of zutara, but I am currently listening to "Almost Lover" by A Fine Frenzy" and so I'm letting my muse go free. Maybe I'll edit it to fit the theme. Maybe. Also I wanted to write a zutara angst piece because I am a big ball of angst because the creators decided that two perfect characters shouldn't be together. And this could technically be canon.**

**Disclaimer: as a broke college student, I own nothing. **

_He's dead. Zuko no!_

She had never seen someone sacrifice their life for her.

_He's dead. He's dead and it's my fault. _

As she reached his body, she bent her healing water around her hands and placed them on his chest.

_Thank Yue. He still has a heartbeat._

She focused on keeping his blood pumping as she absorbed the energy from his wound. Tears began to stream down her face.

_What if this doesn't work? I don't have any more spirit water._

She kept bending the water, kept praying to Yue, and kept hoping that somehow this man she loved would survive.

_Whoa. That's not right. I love Aang. I shouldn't really even care if Zuko died. He betrayed all of us. But he did come back in the end. When did this happen?_

Ever since the moment in the tunnels under Ba Sing Se, she knew.

_I love Zuko. _

But what could she do? Aang was counting on her to be there for him, and Zuko was probably still in love with Mai.

Zuko felt like he had been hit by a komono rhino.

_Lightning actually_.

He struggled to stay awake. He knew that falling into the darkness meant certain death, even if Katara had unbelievable healing powers.

_Katara._

He had to stay alive for Katara.

_Since when do I care so much about her? She's the Avatar's girlfriend. He would kill me._

But he still fought the darkness. He had to fight for her. He could figure out his feelings later.

He felt the pain lift from his chest and his mind clear from pain. When he opened his eyes, Katara was above him sobbing. Her eyes clenched as if she was in pain, her glowing hands on his chest.

Suddenly, she heard him groan.

_He's going to be ok! _

"Thank you, Katara."

"I think it's me who should be thanking you."

Zuko sat up and stared at his savior. Suddenly, he realized why Aang had fallen in love with this girl- no, women now. Waking up and staring into her eyes after a near death experience was akin to being shot with a poison arrow. In that instant, Zuko knew that his life was over. He was never going to be able to be with another woman, never have anyone but her by his side. He was ruined. He almost begged her to kill him now, because death in her arms would have been better than life without her touch.

As Zuko pulled her into a hug, Katara felt a new wave of emotion wash over her. Unlike water, she could not stop this wave from piercing her soul. She looked up into his golden eyes, and knew that she would never be able to be happy with Aang. Aang was wind and freedom. He was his element. He would be nice and sweet to her, and never dream of hurting her, but he had no passion. He shied away from confrontation, even calling her "ma'am" when she was mad. He always wanted her to be happy. Even sparing with Aang was getting boring; he was being too careful not to hurt her. He was holding back. What he didn't understand was by swaddling her in comfort, he left no room for her to grow. If she was willing to admit it to herself, she could say that she felt like Aang deserved her. After all, if they survived this final battle, Aang would have succeeded in bringing balance to the world; he should get some trophy.

After almost a year with Zuko more or less in her life, she learned that he would always be ready to argue. She taught she must be crazy, but if there was one thing that Toph taught her, it was that Katara always felt better after a good argument. She would learn how to sharpen her wit and skill with her words instead of her water. She knew that Zuko never held back in a spar. She knew that she could beat him, but that he would keep fighting and learning how to keep her on her toes. She could learn so much from him. She knew that he was very determined, and wondered what it would feel like to have that determination and passion aimed at her.

It was Katara's turn to be at her crossroads of destiny. If she chose Aang, her life would be full of love and companionship, but it might never develop into passion. If she chose Zuko, their relationship would be full of emotion and heat and warmth. Eventually though, Zuko would need a Fire Lady, and who knows how waterbending genes mix with firebending ones? He might have to leave her to marry a Fire Nation noble or something.

_What am I saying? "If I chose Zuko". He's probably in love with Mai for all I know-_

Zuko surprised both of them by pulling her into a kiss. She moved her hands from around his waist to around her neck.

_Yue above. Aang's kisses never felt like this. Granted we were in the middle of a war and the other time I was super mad at him. Yue is he heating his hands? _

Her thoughts were interrupted yet again by his too hot hands moving down her side. In the back of her mind, she knew that they really should keep his heart rate down, but she ignored that thought as his lips found her neck.

His first kiss with Katara was everything he imagined it to be. Except he didn't imagine it in the Fire Nation Royal Palace's courtyard or that it would take place just minutes after he took a lightning bolt for her, but those were minor details. Her lips were soft against his, but as he expected, she did not back down. She kept his furious pace, threading her fingers through his jet black hair.

_Angi this girl is amazing. Why didn't I do this sooner? _

He pulled her even closer so she was practically straddling him. His chest ached, but he didn't care. He moved his lips to Katara's neck. When she groaned, he decided that it was the most seductive noise on the planet and that he would do anything to hear it again.

Katara pulled away first. Zuko's face fell into his signatue half smirk and he leaned in for another mind-blowing kiss. Katara stopped him by put a hand on his chest.

"Zuko. Stop. We really can't do this." He leaned in and pressed his lips against her neck again.

"Yes we really can." He mumbled against her.

"No. Zuko. Stop." She forced him away again. " I have to go back to Aang and if you keep kissing me like this I won't be able to." Katara was on the edge of tears, but refused to let them fall.

"That's fine. The kid needs to grow up anyway."

"He can't survive without me. He needs me. We both know that this- whatever is sparking between us- is just the product of adrenaline and the fact that I saved your life. It doesn't mean anythi-"

He couldn't take any more of her protests. He crushed his lips to hers. How could she not feel that this was perfect? That their feelings reached deeper than some teenage infatuation? How could she believe this was because of a wartime crush? He jumped in front of Azula's lightning for the chance that she might survive. Zuko tried to fill their embrace with his feelings, hoping that she would get his message- that he wanted her, that he was an idiot to not see it sooner, and that he loved her.

Katara pushed him away again.

"Zuko. You're making this so much harder than it has to be. We both know that 'us' wouldn't work. We're as different as our elements."

"Katara," He sounded as pained as she felt. "Please. We make a great team on the battle field. We can work well together. Besides, water and fire need each other to survive. Why can't we try?" He pulled her closer.

"BECAUSE" Katara was shouting now as she broke his hold. As she stood, her face contorted into a mask of pain and misery, Zuko knew that he had crossed the line. "Because I am Aang's prize for winning the war. I have to be there for him because he's just a kid, and he will never get over me. YUE, ZUKO! We can never be together. You have to let me go. I have to let you go. Because I have to be Aang's trophy and you have to marry a good Fire Nation girl and have firebending babies. Because the world stole our childhoods, and now it has rights to every other stage of our life. Don't you understand?"

"I'm trying to." He mumbled. He stood up to join her and pulled her body against his. As he wrapped his arms around her one last time, he hoped that she could feel his love. He was an idiot. He should be fighting for her, not letting her walk away to another man- no, boy. He had no way to tell her, so he just held her.

After a while with her in his arms, he stepped back and looked into her eyes. "Let's get back to the rendezvous point. But Katara, please remember that if you change your mind, if you decide that we don't owe the world anything anymore, I'll be waiting for you. Always."

She turned away from him, refusing to let him see her cry.

"I know".


End file.
